Tiny studios like Monogram, PRC and First National made tons of B- movies--short, quickly written and generally super-cheaply made. However, the big studios also made Bs--and despite slightly bigger budgets and bigger named actors (in some cases) they also were super-cheap and looked an awful lot like their poverty row versions. In the case of "Phantom Raiders", the prestigious MGM has made a B-- starring their A picture leading man, Walter Pidgeon. And, not surprisingly, it's just as goofy and entertaining as many of the cheapo B detective films.This is the second Nick Carter film and it's plot is very goofy. It seems that lots of merchant ships are being blown up and Nick and his weirdo sidekick Beeswax (Donald Meek) are sent to investigate. But HOW are these ships being blown up? Here's where it gets REALLY goofy. An oddly named Al Taurez (Joseph Schildkraut) has some sort of weird electronic device that causes bombs on the ships to explode...and he can activate these bomb via remote control many, many miles away! Plot-wise, this is as goofy as any of the wild plots in the Charlie Chan films from Monogram--way out, for sure.So is it any good? Well, despite the silly plot, the film IS entertaining. It also features one of the strangest Donald Meek performances you'll ever see--with him pretending to be a psychopath. The bottom line is that the film is silly, breezy entertainment but something that doesn't make a lot of sense or is for an audience who isn't willing to cut the film a lot of slack. You like B detective films, you'll like this one...otherwise, it's easy to skip.

Walter Pidgeon is back in the second of three Nick Carter films he made for MGM's B picture unit until he started getting leads in A films, a lot of them with Greer Garson. He's called in as a consultant by none less than Scotland Yard after one of their operatives is murdered and on US territory.Said territory being the Panama Canal Zone where several British ships have gone down without warning. Being wartime a U-Boat is suspected, but they can't find hint of one operating in the area.Not much suspense in this film since we know right away it's Joseph Schildkraut who is playing one of his best and most epicene villains, something Schildkraut did with aplomb. He's a former union organizer in America and he and Pidgeon have history. Of course he doesn't believe that Nick Carter is just in the Panama Canal Zone for a vacation. I never heard of it being a vacation place when we did lease it from Panama.As usual Donald Meek is more annoying than entertaining as the 'bee man' who inflicted himself on Pidgeon in the first Carter film. But Schildkraut lifts this one a notch with his performance.

As B-films go, PHANTOM RAIDERS is just a slight cut above a serial cliffhanger, the kind that the poverty row studios churned out in the '30s and '40s. Surprisingly enough, this one comes from MGM and has a certain gloss.It's fast moving, neatly developed and, except for some unnecessary comic interludes, provides a satisfying look at the pre-WWII era. Nick Carter (Pidgeon) is assigned to find out who is blowing up cargo ships in Panama for insurance money. We learn early on that the culprit is the cruel and cunning Joseph Schildkraut, always one step ahead of the authorities until the very end.Donald Meek has a rather annoying role as a bee-keeper who happens to be Carter's sidekick. His unlikely role is a departure from his usual "meek" roles but it becomes tedious after some comic interludes in a mystery that tries to blend corny humor with suspense. Thankfully, the good supporting cast includes Florence Rice, John Carroll, Cecil Kellaway and Nat Pendleton.Not bad, but easily a programmer you can afford to miss. Obviously made before Walter Pidgeon became a big name at Metro via being teamed with Greer Garson in a series of successful films.

In between the start of talkies and about the time of this, there were all sorts of experiments with the detective form. An amazing number, just absolutely amazing, of discrete types were invented. It was a heady time, much more ambitious and adventuresome than what we have today.Most of the experiments failed, or course. And that's true even of experiments that were profitable enough to spawn a series. Success in this way means more than just selling tickets, which is easy enough. Its knowing when you find the bones to something you can understand and rebuild over and over in different ways. Its the difference between copying and creating and the creators will always win.To win you need to understand and to understand you need to try and fail. This is a failure of an interesting type. It sticks to the normal three component model: the detective, the villain, the causal mechanism.We usually these days are presented with a cool detective, in part because we rely more on actors and personalities. Unfortunately that's not very cinematic usually, so it doesn't reward. This movie treats us to pretty uninteresting detective, pretty much a dope. And his assistant is too, both comic. Most of the attention — so far as character — is on the villain. He's supersmooth, always calm and anticipating the next move until towards the end. His weapon is the knife, which he can throw perfectly. At the beginning, he even throws a pen across a room and hits the center of the target.Incidentally, the causal mechanics of the plot are somewhat incomprehensibly complex. There isn't much complicated in the device, but it is peculiar in a way. Its a radio that sends a triggering signal to bombs concealed on ships. These are blown up for the insurance money. What's unsettling, strange, is that the bombs are concealed in radio receivers. There's no reason for this except to make it easier for us to read.But the business behind the scenes is what makes the plot work, all sorts of business about swapping cargo, forging inspection documents and manifestos. I admit that THIS was difficult to read because nothing could be shown. It could only be explained.An interesting fossil, but a bad movie, even though the director had some reputation.Ted's Evaluation -- 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.